Businessman Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of former US President Donald Trump, is now venturing into the Balkans with ambitious plans for transformative property developments across Albania and Serbia. Through his Miami-based private equity firm, Affinity Partners, Kushner is engaged in advanced discussions for investments exceeding $1 billion, aiming to reshape the landscape of tourism and real estate in Southeast Europe, the New York Post reports.

The highest hotel in Prague, Corinthia has joined the Czech Inn Hotels chain, reports Newstream.cz. The plan is to gradually modernize the hotel and revitalize the rooms, but with great emphasis on preserving the unique character and historical value of the building.

The first Ibis Styles hotel will open on the Romanian seaside this summer following a franchise agreement signed by Accor and Paradis Hotels & Resort, a company owned by Romanian entrepreneur Aurelian Marin.

Global hotel operator Accor Group will introduce its premium hotel brand Pullman after taking over the management role at Hard Rock Hotel in Budapest. The opening is scheduled for the end of March 2024.

The occupancy rate in Bucharest’s hotel market was up 5% in 2023 compared to the previous year, but it remains around 10% under 2019. However, average revenue per room was up 12%, which is higher than in pre-pandemic times, according to a Cushman & Wakefield Echinox report.

Experts of Cushman & Wakefield expect transactional activity on the Polish hotel market to pick up in 2024 as key performance indicators continue to improve and the pressure on investors to allocate capital builds up. Although 2023’s total investment volume on the Polish market was below that of 2019, it reached nearly €83 million - an 82% increase year-on-year. Warsaw, Vilnius and Edinburg are the only main European hotel markets that reported year-on-year growth in occupancy levels last year. At the same time, Warsaw came third for ADR growth (EUR) in 2023, with an increase of 20.1% year-on-year. 

Radisson Hotel Group has opened in Belgrade its first hotel under the RED brand, marking its expansion in Southeast Europe.

Vastint Poland has been awarded the LEED Gold certification for the Sound Garden Hotel located within Business Garden Warsaw. This is the last of seven buildings that make up this  complex, which has successfully undergone multi-criteria environmental verification.

For a time, the Prague hotel market has lagged behind other European cities in terms of recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its latest performance indicators are showing a significant increase in 2023, Cushman & Wakefield reports.

IHG Hotels & Resorts has announced its first Holiday Inn & Suites property in Europe by signing Holiday Inn & Suites Budapest Centrale – part of its Holiday Inn Hotels & Resorts brand. The new hotel will offer 170 rooms and is set to open in late 2026.